Insurance Fraud Detection

The ERIE’s fraud detection program is a team effort. It begins with our Policyholders, Agents and Employees who initially detect signs of fraud and refer suspicious claims to our special investigators.

Erie Insurance has also joined other insurers and law enforcement groups to sponsor awareness campaigns for the public.

ERIE’s actions include:

Support of strong penalties for criminals who engage in insurance fraud.

Working with law enforcement agencies to identify and prosecute criminals who victimize our Policyholders.

Review of suspicious claims by ERIE’s Special Investigative Unit, a team of former law enforcement officers.

Other activities:

The insurance industry and law enforcement groups are fighting back with tactics ranging from computer databases to dogs. The Insurance Services Office (ISO) maintains a 600-million record database of prior claims.

The American Insurance Services Group (AISG) and LexisNexus help combat underwriting fraud by examining an applicant’s claims history against data on burglary, fire, theft and other property and liability losses.

Insurers, state fraud bureaus and law enforcement officials often use these databases to track individuals with a history of fraud.

Special investigative units are on the rise. Today, more than 75 percent of all property/casualty insurers have special investigators on staff, many of which are former law enforcement officers.

Some insurance companies and law enforcement agencies use trained Labrador retrievers to sniff out 18 different fire-causing products, such as gasoline and kerosene, commonly used in arson.

Federal law enforcement agencies have formed task forces to combat insurance fraud.